Leveling device



Dec. 6, 1955 N. INGARRA LEVELING DEVICE Filed Sept. 16, 1954 INVENTOR. NICHOLAS INGARRA ATORNEY United States Patent LEVELING DEVICE Nicholas Ingarra, Queens Village, N. Y.

Application September 16, 1954, Serial No. 456,384

1 Claim. (Cl. 45-139) The present invention relates to an improved leveling device adapted for use in connection with apparatus and equipment, such as benches, cabinets, furniture, show cases and the like.

Accordingly, an object of the present invention is to provide such a device which is constructed of a minimum number of parts, can be manufactured economically, and is readily operated either manually or with the assistance of common tools.

Another object is to provide such a device which may be attached to the apparatus or equipment to be leveled or may be used as a separate element in connection with apparatus or equipment already in use.

Another object is to provide such a device which is constructed and arranged to fit into a wide variety of conventional corner structures and be retained in such position without any attaching means to support the structure.

A further object is to provide such devices which can be grouped in nested relation to facilitate storage or packaging thereof.

Other and further objects will be obvious upon an understanding of the illustrative embodiment about to be described, or will be indicated in the appended claim, and various advantages not referred to herein will occur to one skilled in the art upon employment of the invention in practice.

A preferred embodiment of the invention has been chosen for purposes of illustration and description and is shown in the accompanying drawing, forming a part of the specification, wherein:

Fig. 1 is a fragmentary front elevational view of a chest of drawers equipped with leveling devices in accordance with the invention;

Fig. 2 is a sectional view taken along the line 22 on Fig. 1;

Fig. 3 is a bottom view taken along the line 33 on Fig. 1;

Fig. 4 is a framentary perspective View illustrating the manner in which a leveling device is installed in a corner of the chest;

Fig. 5 is a perspective view of the leveling device illustrating the portion thereof which fits into the corner.

Referring to the drawing in detail, there is shown, by way of example, a chest of drawers having a corner structure at the bottom thereof which includes a pair of horizontal flanges or rails 11 meeting at an angle to provide a corner for receiving a leveling device 12 about to be described in detail. The chest shown herein has four corners each of which is provided with such structure and the flanges or rails 11 meet at right angles.

Generally described, the leveling device, as seen in Fig. 5, comprises a body member or base 14 provided with a screw threaded vertical opening 15 extending therethrough and having a vertical wall section 16 contoured to fit within the corner structure and having shoulder or flange means 17 adjacent the lower edge of the wall section 16 and adapted to extend beneath and support the flanges or rails 11, and a screw threaded rod 18 disposed in the opening 15 with its lower end engaging the floor surface on which the chest is supported and being adjustable with respect to the base 14 to level the chest.

The leveling device shown herein has a generally triangular base 14 and the vertical wall section 16 has a pair of portions 19 meeting at right angles and the shoulder means 17 include a horizontal flange 20 extending outwardly from each of the wall portions 19. Such construction is readily fabricated by stamping and forming the same from rigid sheet metal to provide the base 14, the wall portions 19 and the flanges 20, as well as an upstanding flange 21 at the hypotenuse of the base which further stiflens the base plate 14. In performing the foregoing operations, a hole is punched into the base and the metal surrounding the hole is drawn into a tubular, collar-like vertical portion 22 in which the threaded opening 15 is provided.

Another advantage of the foregoing construction is that the base members can be nested by placing one on top of the other and thus can be stored conveniently and can be arranged in a package very compactly. For example, four base members and four rods detached from each other may comprise a unit package for a piece of equipment or apparatus having four corners.

The rod 18 may be provided with a formation at its upper and/or lower ends adapted to be engaged by a common tool, such as a screw driver or wrench to adjust the rod in leveling the chest. For example, as shown, the upper end may have a slot 24 for receiving a screw driver (Fig. 2) and the lower end may have a nut-like head 25 adapted to be gripped by a wrench or pliers, or

even manually in threading the rod into the base member.

The leveling device disclosed herein is adapted for use with most all equipment or apparatus because the corner structure illustrated herein or its equivalent is conventional. Consequently, the leveling device can be used in connection with apparatus or equipment already in use and can be supplied with newly purchased apparatus.

When the leveling device is fitted into the corner structure and supports the same, the weight of the apparatus bearing on the shoulder means 17 holds it in place. However, if desired, the leveling device may be secured to the flanges or rails 11 in any conventional manner, as by bolts, nails or screws or by welding, cementing or otherwise adhering the device to the corner structure.

While the corner structure is illustrated herein as providing a right angle corner, it will be appreciated without further illustration that the corner could be acute or obtuse or even arcuate and that the wall section 16 could be contoured to conform to such corners and could be provided with appropriate shoulder means 17. I

From the foregoing description, it will be seen that the present invention provides a leveling device which is simple and economical in construction and is practical and reliable in use. The device is sufliciently rugged to support heavy structures, such as laboratory benches and refrigerated show cases, and has a long useful life.

As various changes may be made in the form, construction, and arrangement of the parts herein, without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention and without sacrificing any of its advantages, it is to be understood thatall matters are to be interpreted as illustrative and not in any limiting sense.

What is claimed is:

A unitary leveling device of the class described comprising a body member formed of rigid sheet metal having a triangularly shaped, horizontal base provided with a 1 screw threaded vertical opening'extending therethrough each of said wall portions adjacent the lower edge thereof, References Cited in the file of this patent an upstanding flange at a hypotenuse of said triangular UNITED STATES ATENTS shaped base, and a screw threaded rod disposed in said i o z opening, said rod being provided at its upper and lower :13:2

ends with slot and nut formations, respectively. 5 1,255,427 Jones Feb. 1918 1,849,835 Jantzen et a1. Mar. 15, 1932 2,256,892 Burman Sept. 23, 1941 2,295,911 Page Sept. 15, 1942 

